Updated Dec 30, 2020
MVAS is closely following guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and recommendations from the Minnesota Department of Health. Depending on future recommendations, our policies may change.
Dec 30 Announcement: Classes and events are postponed till Apr 1, 2021
Is that light at the end of the tunnel we see? Possibly. In our last Notification, dated Sep 16, 2020, the school indicated it expected to commence classes on Jan 1, 2021. In the Jul 3, 2020 Notification, we set specific requirements for the reopening of the school which are listed below. Sadly, none of these have been met.
- A viable vaccine for COVID-19 must be available. The vaccine must be effective, safe, affordable and accessible for all.
- Adequate testing for COVID-19. Testing must be reliable and accessible to all who wish to be tested. If the students and instructor can test prior to the class and thus guarantee their COVID free status, then classes can resume in safety.
- A significant reduction in US COVID-19 cases nationally. Contact tracing and quarantining is all but impossible with the current 50,000 – 100,000 new cases per day. If the situation becomes a manageable one, then the school can start reassessing the possibility of reopening classes.
A vaccine is available, effective, safe and affordable, but it looks as if it will be April at the earliest before it is accessible for all.
Testing is reliable and accessible for all, but the process can be difficult and cumbersome. We are still hoping for the cheap home test. These are now becoming available.
The rate of infections and deaths have skyrocketed since September, so this requirement is far from being met.
The board of MVAS feels it would be irresponsible to reopen in January and has postponed the reopening until Apr 1, 2021. Prior to the decision, instructors for classes in the first quarter were contacted and all agreed it would be better to wait till conditions were more favorable. Currently, the plan is to commence classes Apr 1; however, some classes may commence earlier if the instructor and all students are vaccinated or can show a negative test on the first morning of the class. Where possible, classes scheduled for the first quarter will be rescheduled for later in the year. We expect to run nearly all the classes from 2020 in 2021. All instructors have indicated they wish to return and resume teaching.
Again, the board would like to apologize to all the disappointed students and instructors. The decision was not taken lightly, but we feel it was the best course of action.
Some Other News
Studios
The Studios remain open to members of the Milan Village Arts School and have been open since early July.
School Viability & Reopening
The school is in a good position to reopen. In March, the school received PPP funding. In December, the school was awarded a grant for the sum of $14,500 from the Minnesota State Arts Board. In early January, we will receive our second year Operational Support funding from the Southwest Minnesota Arts Council. Our major private funders have all stepped up to the plate and made substantial donations over the past 9 months. Members and supporters of the school have also renewed memberships and made donations on their own accord. For all these, the school is extremely appreciative. It appears the school will survive the storm.
2021 Spoon Gathering
The 2021 Spoon Gathering will be held Jun 4 – 6, 2021 unless the government shuts us down again. Some of the details may change depending on circumstances. Virtually all that were registered for 2020 have indicated they are returning for 2021! New registrations are scheduled for Jan 15, 2021, but this may be delayed. Updates should start in early 2021. Updates will also be posted on the Facebook group: The Spoon Gathering, 
https://www.
https://www.Trestuen Legacy Campaign launched.
As many of you know, the Milan Village Arts School has initiated a campaign to purchase and preserve the Karen Jenson Trestuen Garden Gallery in Milan. The Trestuen Gallery is a treasure trove of Scandinavian folk art and design. The preservation of the home will not only be a great boon for Milan and the Milan Village Arts School, but also for Minnesota and the Scandinavian arts. For more details, please visit the Facebook group page: the Karen Jenson Trestuen Garden Gallery, https://www.facebook.
https://www.facebook.Sep 16, 2020 MVAS Announcement: Classes & 2021 Class Schedule
Sep 30 Announcement: Due to COVID-19 (coronavirus) all MVAS classes and events are cancelled until Jan 1, 2021.
It is about this time of the year that the school is finishing up the class schedule and making preparations for the Meander and the kickoff for class registrations in early October. Like many, I thought classes would be back to normal by the second half of the year, but COVID has been more challenging than anticipated. 2 weeks ago the board made the decision to rest classes for the remainder of 2020. Fortunately, the 4th quarter of the year is the quietest time for classes so the decision was not a difficult one. We apologize to our many disappointed students, but we have been working closely with students and instructors to create some favorable outcomes.
Many of you may have noticed the degree of conflicting information regarding COVID-19. This has made planning very difficult. Due to the lack of clarity and the need to get a better understanding of the pandemic, the 2021 Class Schedule will be delayed till December. The 2021 Class Schedule will run from Jan 1 – Sep 30, 2021. As 95% of our classes are in this period, the teaching year should not be too adversely affected. Fortunately, our instructors are keen to teach next year, so we should be running nearly all the classes which were scheduled for 2020.
If your address has changed in the last 12 months, please notify the school so that you will receive your Class Schedule. If you have not been receiving the schedule by mail and wish to receive it, please send us your Postal Address details.
The first quarter of 2021 may still be a challenging time for the school as we do not expect a vaccine to be widely available to the public. We will cross these bridges as we come to them. I do expect the second quarter to be more favorable and by the second half of 2021 the school should be back to full operational status.
July 3, 2020 MVAS Announcement: Classes, Studios & COVID-19
First, thank you to everyone for the overwhelming support over the last several months. Thank you for the new memberships, the generous donations, the emails and the phone calls of support, your patience and your ongoing encouragement.
You may have noticed the Milan Village Arts School has been quiet in recent months. We have been taking a wait and watch approach. In March, the board put together a contingency plan for classes, then a week later Minnesota was in full lockdown. No one knew whether the lockdown would last weeks, months or longer. Now the 4th of July is here and the last 3 and a half months feels like an eternity. It is hard to believe the year is just half over. Since March, MVAS has cancelled all classes, studios and events, including the annual Spoon Gathering. June brought some hope with a relaxation of government directives and a possibility of a gradual reopening of classes. It appeared the US was heading in the right direction.
On June 18th the board voted to commence the process of exploring the possibility of a controlled reopening of classes in July starting with Jim Paulson’s Scandinavian Ale Bowl Carving class on Jul 17 – 19. Given the facilities available to the school, including the main school, Burn’s Park for outdoor classes and the expansive space in the Greater Milan Initiative building, MVAS, under CDC guidelines, felt it would be able to conduct classes safely for everyone involved, including the instructors, students and staff.
Within days of the June board meeting the situation in the US deteriorated quickly, particularly in the southern states of Florida, Texas, Georgia, Arizona and California. While these states are far from Minnesota, the US is in this together. The COVID-19 virus is not under control and given the rapid growth in infections, it will not be for some time. If the reopening had been a success and numbers had continued to fall across the US, MVAS would have pursued a reopening. This is no longer possible. Minnesota has done better in comparison, but only in comparison.
Some schools have closed till January of 2021, others are commencing a reopening, while others, like MVAS, have been watching the pandemic closely and have executed a rolling shutdown. This situation remains very fluid and where we will all be at year’s end is anyone’s guess. In response to a worsening national situation, MVAS has put a reopening on pause and has cancelled or postponed . This decision allows the school to keep its options open. We are working closely with instructors and students behind the scenes to ensure everyone knows their options. Right from the beginning all students were given the choice of rescheduling to a later class, holding their tuition in credit or receiving a full refund.
As mentioned, the support from our students, members, instructors and patrons has been overwhelming. Classes represent half our operating revenue. All businesses have been struggling since mid-March and MVAS is no exception. MVAS is in a stable financial position for the short term and is well positioned to weather the pandemic for the foreseeable future. Saying that, resources are limited and the school has for the last 4 years been directing spare available funds into the building restoration. It is my assessment 2021 will likely be a difficult year.
All schools are currently struggling with risk assessment. Due to the current climate, MVAS believes, even with precautions and the CDC guidelines, it is too risky to commence a reopening of classes. While I feel the school can guarantee a COVID free teaching environment at the start of class, once the instructor and students arrive we will lose control of our environment. For the school to move forward one of the following conditions needs to be met.
A viable vaccine for COVID-19 must be available. The vaccine must be effective, safe, affordable and accessible for all.
Adequate testing for COVID-19. Testing must be reliable and accessible to all who wish to be tested. If the students and instructor can test prior to the class and thus guarantee their COVID free status, then classes can resume in safety.
A significant reduction in US CODID-19 cases nationally. Contact tracing and quarantining is all but impossible with the current 50,000 – 100,000 new cases per day. If the situation becomes a manageable one, then the school can start reassessing the possibility of reopening classes.
On a happy note, MVAS is delighted to announce both the Framing Studio and Weaving Studio are now open to members. Shortly we hope to restart both the Silver Studio and the Open Carving Night (please see the conditions of entry for the Framing Studio below). If the current climate improves over the next month or two, there is a possibility classes will be held later this year.
For questions, please contact the Milan Village Arts School .
Ron Porep
MVAS Director
Milan Village Arts School
P.O. Box 230
97 Washington Ave.
Milan, MN 56262
320.734.4807
